Hello all......yes it's been a while! I'm fine, staying close to home and ducking the virus like most people. Looking forward to the vaccine when it comes. I'm not going to "hijack'" this thread so I'll be brief. As propbeanie pointed out, I've had other interests since getting away from the computer. One being a restoration of a 1934 Ford Victoria (a project I've long wanted to do). Between building up my shop with necessary tools (drill press; handmade 50 ton press; mig welder; numerous hand tools specific to this cars repair etc.) plus having a learning curve in working on these kinds of automobiles (no repair manuals on these older cars, Ford expected you to bring it in for them to work on).
I've taken the original car I bought:
and turned it into this:
Yep, it's down to the frame! I'm replacing rivets as needed, and already had it straightened. Sandblasting/painting will be next before rebuilding the components. Most of the undercarriage (springs, shocks, brakes) have needed to be replaced/repaired. Frankly, even though the initial picture "looked good", it was in terrible shape..... I'd call it a "death trap" after looking into it. Engine is good, but I'll still need to rebuild. Here's a few more pictures:
That large square hole on the back is where the trunk lid goes. The Ford Victoria was the first Ford to have a trunk (a place to store things). The Model A Victoria didn't have a lid. You had to pull forward the rear seat back to get to the storage space. 33-34 Ford Victoria's had trunks accessible from outside the car. After the 34 Victoria, all other Ford model years had outside opening trunks. The Victoria ran for only five years 30-34. The name was used again during the Fifty's by Ford on specific models. Once again later as their top-of-the-line Crown Victoria.
The body is sitting on a boat frame I had that has a makeshift auto frame on it, ready for me to have it chemically dipped. This will strip off 4 layers of lacquer paint and rust before starting the actual body work. Doors and fenders are already cleaned, ready for their next phase. You'd think I would have been further along than this, BUT, what else do I have to do?!?
Again, sorry for this post. I just couldn't help myself in responding to a valid question as to why FOTRSU has become popular.
The continued hard work of guys like propbeanie and s7rikeback is the only answer!
